L
Atinsky name: Begonia L.
Family: Begonia - Begoniaceae
Homeland: Tropical America, Asia, Africa
Cultivation Difficulty: For those with little experience.
Lighting: Bright light
Humidity: High 
Description:
Begonium family. Comes from South America, Southeast Asia and Africa, where it grows wild in the forests. Herbaceous plants, having various forms, very diverse structure and height. Their leaves are narrow, elongated, oval, rounded, very small, large and wide, split, sharp-serrated, asymmetrical. Downy pubescent. Different species have a special color. The structure, size of flowers and their color varied. In some varieties they are terry.
All begonias are subdivided into flowering and decorative leaves and varieties. The latter also bloom, but their main decorative value lies in the beautiful leaves (see decorative begonias).
The following groups belong to the flowering begonias: begonia always flowering - B. semperflorens hort. (B, s. Culforum Krauss.), Slender begonia - V. gracilis NBC., Tuberous begonia - V. tuberhybrida Voss., Gluard de Lorrain begonia - W. hybrida Gloire de Lorraine.
Types of decorative begonias:
1. Begonia is always flowering.
The best varieties of begonias ever-flowering for cultivation in rooms are: 'Charmé' - plant height 20 cm, carmine-red flowers; 'Rose of Erford' - height 15 cm, carmine-pink flowers; 'Rose of Media' - height 12 cm, pink flowers; 'Foogourgel' - height 15 cm, leaves red, flowers scarlet.
Very popular, blooming year-round hybrids "Semperflorens", tolerate the sun better than other varieties. These begonias mainly grow in gardens and squares, flower beds and lawns. They can also be bred in pots, especially begonias with decorative flowers.
2. Begonia is slim.
The best varieties of slender begonias: 'Carmen Nana' - height 12-15 cm, the leaves are red-bronze, the flowers are pink-red; 'Weis Pearl' - height 25 cm, green leaves, white flowers; 'Nidrige Indianerin' - height 15 cm, the leaves are red-bronze, salmon-scarlet flowers.
Wonderful varieties of these begonias with double flowers: 'Ermelo' - height 15-20 cm, leaves reddish, red flowers; 'Gustav Lind' - height 20-25 cm, green leaves, pink flowers; "Zurich" - height 15-20 cm, green leaves, red flowers.
Begonia is always flowering and slim propagated by seeds. With good storage, they remain viable for 2-3 years. Seeds should be of high quality and high germination. Seedlings should guarantee the uniformity of plants and signs of the variety.
The seeds are very small - in 1 g there are 60–100 thousand pieces, so they are mixed with sand or chalk before sowing. Sowing is performed on the surface of a wet substrate from a folded sheet of white paper, rarely. From above, the seeds are not sprinkled with earth, but covered with paper, securing it on low pegs. At the same time the air passes freely under the paper, but the earth dries out slowly. It is better to sow the seeds in February - March in dredging from two parts of hardwood and one part of sand. The temperature of the substrate for seed germination should be 20-25 ° C. Before emergence of paper moistened with water. Emerged shoots moistened with fine water dust from the spray. The water for moistening the seedlings is taken warm, 3-4 ° C higher than the ambient temperature. Very small seedlings 2-3 times dive with a fork. Young plants are planted in pots filled with a mixture of hardwood (two parts), humus soil and sand (one by one). The plants of these begonias bloom from May to November.
3. Tuberous begonia.
Tuberous begonia is an annual herbaceous plant 20–40 cm tall with a translucent juicy fleshy stem and a thick underground tuber. The leaves are heart-shaped, slightly asymmetrical. The flowers are terry, semi-double and non-double, dioecious - male larger, female smaller with a small number of petals.
In the culture there are varieties and forms of various colors: dark red, maroon, red, orange, pink, salmon-roa, yellow, cream, white.
The tuberous seed begonia is propagated by seeds, just as begonia is always flowering. Her seeds are small (in 1 g about 40 thousand units). In order to obtain seeds, artificial pollination of semi-double and double flowers within the variety is carried out.
Plants have knobby creeping rhizomes (tubers). For breeding tubers select uterine, typical for this variety of plants.
After flowering, they are watered less and by the winter they shed their leaves. Tubers are dried in pots or removed from the ground, stored in peat at a temperature of 8 to 12 ° C. In February-March, they are laid out on a layer of wet earth mixture from equal parts of hardwood, peat and sand.
Substrate temperature should be 20 ° С. The thickness of the mixture depends on the size of the tubers. When the eyes sprout, the tubers are cut into pieces by the number of germinated eyes. All sections are powdered with charcoal powder. To dry, cut pieces of rhizome can be left in the air for 24 hours. Then they are planted in boxes and they take root in three weeks. Rooted plants are transplanted into 9-11 cm pots. The substrate for growing plants is made up of sod, hardwood, peat land (in two parts) and sand one part. When transplanted into the nutrient mixture, add two parts of humus. Plants bloom from May to October.
4. The begonia of the Gluard de Lorrain group.
Begonias like "Lorrain", appeared at the end of the XIX century and under the name "Gloire de Lorraine" for a long time dominated the market. This variety of begonias blooms in winter with white or pink flowers. Currently it is rarely found in flower shops.
The begonia of the Gluard de Lorrain group has many wonderful varieties with small shiny, oval leaves and many flowers collected in inflorescences. These are plants of a short day. It blooms from November to February. There are varieties with pink, red, white semi-double and double flowers.
The best varieties are the following: 'Carolina' - low plants with lots of dark pink flowers, blooms late; 'Eges Favorite' - very ornamental plants with dark pink flowers; "Competitor" - a spectacular plant of a powerful structure, with dense pink flowers; blooms in January - February; 'Marina' - very valuable undersized variety with dark pink-flowers, gathered in short inflorescences over the leaves; 'Rosemary - Swiss variety of low growth, with original pink flowers.
Vegetatively propagated by leaf and stem (apical) cuttings. For adult plants the best mixture of three parts of deciduous land, one part of peat and sand. In such a mixture, it is desirable to add one part of the rotted cow manure.
In addition, the following types of begonias can be grown in the rooms.
5. Begonia Kredner.
B. credneri Haage et Schmidt. Hybrid v. Scharffiana x v. Metallica. Metallic leaves on top
dark green, brownish below. The flowers are large, bright pink. It blooms in spring and summer.
6. Begonia tubular.
V. manicata Bfongn. Homeland - Mexico. The leaves are glossy, green. The flowers are pink. Its garden form is highly decorative - V. manicata var. aurea maculata hort. with yellow and white spots on the leaves and a red tint. It blooms in summer and winter.
7. Begonia fuchsia.
V. fuchsksioides hook. Homeland - Colombia. The flowers are small, cinnabar-red, in drooping inflorescences. It blooms from December to March.
8. Begonia meat-red.
V. incarnata Link. et Otto. Homeland - Mexico. The leaves are green, dark pink flowers, resembling indoor maple flowers. Very decorative.
9. Begonia alfalfa.
B. hybrida lucerna hort. Hybrid V. Sogullina X V. richardsiana. The leaves are oblong-oval, on top green with silver stripes, bottom red-brown. The flowers are large, pink, hanging on beautiful inflorescences. It blooms from February to June.
10. The Begonias of the Elatio Group.
At the beginning of the twentieth century in England, the Elatior begonia was bred from tuberous begonias, which blooms all year round with white, red, pink, yellow flowers. In their mass, they are larger and brighter than the flowers of the "Lorraine" hybrids similar to them. In the begonia group "Elatior", Rieger's begonias, named after the breeder, gained the most popularity.
Begonias tolerate the conditions of apartments. In winter, the plants are kept at a temperature of 16-18 ° C, they are watered moderately, but regularly and only with soft water, avoiding drying out and especially over-wetting the earthy coma. In the summer, they are kept on bright windows with diffused light or in slightly shaded areas. The bright sun will be enjoyed except the white-spotted begonia.
For these plants moist air is favorable, therefore it is recommended to put pots with them in a tray with wet peat or sphagnum. Spray should not be. Remove dead leaves in a timely manner.
Begonias reproduce by leaf or stem cuttings, better in spring (but possible within a year), as well as by dividing the bush.
As a substrate for rooting cuttings using a mixture of sand with peat (3: 1). The optimum temperature for grafting is 22-24 ° C. It is better to keep them under a glass jar or covered with plastic wrap. Stem cuttings root well in water at a temperature of 22-24 ° C.
Begonias are fed from spring to autumn every two weeks with full mineral fertilizer. Young plants are transplanted every year, later on, as needed, into an earthy mixture of leafy earth, peat, humus and light soddy earth (2: 2: 2: 1).
The second large group combines tuberous begonias (V. tuberhybrida voss.). These plants have gained great popularity among fans of indoor plants due to the abundant flowering and unusually diverse form of flowers with a wide palette of colors and varying degrees of terry. Do not be surprised that you can find non-double flowers on terry varieties. The fact is that all begonias have two types of flowers: male and female. In the male flowers there are numerous stamens. To get a terry variety, choose plants whose stamens turn into petals. There are no stamens in the female flowers, which means there are no additional petals. Figuratively speaking, their terry begonias are obliged to flowers, "men."
Tubers begonias - fertile object of trade. They can be found on sale for almost the entire winter. For balconies, ampelous varieties were obtained, and among terry ones, with various forms of petals that form flowers that look like carnations or roses. In addition to flowers with a uniform color, you will be offered two-color flowers, for example, with bright pink edges and a yellowish-white center of each petal, or with an unusually “marble” color (variety "Marmorata").
When buying a tuber, pay attention to the sprouts (especially if you get begonia closer to spring). They should not be brown spots, it is desirable that they were small, and the tuber itself is elastic. At the slightest sign of drying (and this happens during long-term storage in heat) or decay from buying it is better to refrain.
Before planting, the tubers should be stored in peat or sand in a domestic refrigerator. They are interrupted by rest in March, when begonias need to be planted in a slightly wet substrate, kept in a warm place and gradually increase watering.
Tuberous begonias like light or half-shaded places. If they grow on your balcony, arrange them so that the wind does not disturb them. If the plants remain in the room, they need regular airing of the room.
After the begonias fade, they are gradually prepared for winter rest. Watering is gradually reduced, the above-ground part is cut, and the pot with the plant is stored in a dry cool place with a temperature of 14-16 ° C, only occasionally moistening the soil.
In the spring (March), they are transplanted into a fresh, earthy mixture of leafy, soddy earth and sand (2: 1: 2), they resume regular watering, and then top dressing. When planting, do not bury the tuber too much, only lightly sprinkle its surface with sand.
Tuberous begonias are propagated by seed, leaf and stem cuttings, as well as the division of tubers.
Seeds are usually sown superficially on peat land and must be covered with glass or paper, occasionally moistening the crop with warm water from a spray bottle.
In order to obtain cuttings, it is necessary to plant the tubers in a mixture of equal parts of leafy land, peat and sand. Germination should go at a temperature of 20 ° C and regular watering with warm water. After the emergence of shoots, you can proceed to grafting. Cut the cuttings should be so that the cut shoots remained at least one leaf, otherwise the tuber may die. Then the cuttings are seated on rooting. Water them regularly, monitor the humidity of the air and the earth, protect from sunlight. About a month later, they can already be put on a permanent place.
The plant can be propagated by dividing the tuber. After the sprouts begin to appear on it, they start its division. Each divided part of a tuber must have at least one (or two) kidney. To cut the site is not rotten, be sure to powder them with charcoal powder. And then plant in separate pots.
The third group includes begonias that do not bloom so luxuriantly, yielding to tuberous begonia in size and shape of flowers, but the flowering period is much longer, since they do not have winter dormancy. They remain green in winter.
One of the most common begonias of this kind is everglowing begonia (V. semperflorens Link, et Otto). It forms low (up to 30 cm) strongly branched bushes with fragile, succulent, bare stems. Over time, at the base they woody. The leaves are not large (about 7 cm long), arranged on short petioles, shiny, unequal, slightly kosyserdtsevidnye. There are light green, dark green, sometimes even burgundy. Along the edges of the leaf blade small teeth. Small flowers (up to 2 cm in diameter), simple or double, white, pink and red. Are located in several pieces in the axils of the leaves.
In order for the plant to bloom longer and more abundantly, in the spring it should be cut short enough, provide it with a bright sunny place, water it abundantly and regularly (once every two weeks) feed it with mineral fertilizers. Easily propagated either by seed or cuttings. Cuttings root well in water or in any loose moist substrate. Seeds of begonias are small, dusty. They easily lose their germination, so it is advisable to use seeds collected and packed in the current season. Begonias are sown in January, and then they will bloom in May-June. On the soil it is necessary to pour the calcined sand with a layer of 3 mm and carefully align it. Liberally moisten the soil surface with a spray. Scatter the seeds along the intended grooves, shaking them off by gently tapping them from a white sheet of paper (this makes it easier to control the crumble of seeds). Sprinkle with water again, cover with glass and place the pot in a lighted warm place. For the development of seedlings need lighting with fluorescent lamps. As it dries, water it with soft water from a sprayer or with a pipette between the rows, once a month, give mineral supplements. In dense crops, begonias develop too slowly. As soon as you can hold the seedlings in your hands, dive them - this will increase growth. When the plants get stronger, plant them in separate pots.
Young plants are transplanted annually, old ones - as needed, in an earthen mixture consisting of leafy earth, peat, humus and sand (2: 1: 1: 1).
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